Zooey Deschanel dismisses Russell Brand flirting rumor

Actress Zooey Deschanel has denied rumors she is growing close to newly-single Russell Brand, insisting she has only met him once and it was four years ago.

Reports last month suggested the British funnyman was attempting to woo the “New Girl” star weeks after his split from Katy Perry, by bombarding her with flirty text messages.

AP Photo/Charles Sykes

However, Deschanel is adamant she is not in Brand’s sights and hasn’t even given him her phone number.

The actress tells The Guardian, “That’s complete fabrication! I don’t even know him! I maybe met him once, in passing, four years ago. And he definitely doesn’t have my phone number! That was a story made up by a single website. It’s crazy how that got picked up – I mean how does that even happen?”